


Find the balance

by dreamsanddeath



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Opposites Attract
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:40:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23643217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dreamsanddeath/pseuds/dreamsanddeath
Summary: Nico di Angelo did not like to be touched, and Will was okay with that.
Relationships: Nico di Angelo/Will Solace
Comments: 4
Kudos: 105





	Find the balance

Nico di Angelo did not like to be touched. 

Will could not reach down and lace their fingers together while they walked to the dining pavilion. He couldn’t pull Nico close at campfires, greet him with a hug, or show him affection in public with an unconscious ease as so many of their peers seemed to do. 

  
Will could not, dared not, reach out and swipe away a smudge of dirt or food or whatever else from Nico’s face with his thumb. He was not permitted to kiss him goodnight after walking him to the door of Cabin 13. 

Will baffled his siblings, who scrunched up their faces and inquired with concern how his relationship with Nico could be fulfilling or healthy if physical affection was so off limits. 

“Did I say that it was?” Will asked them, his voice soft but sharp, a bit on the defensive. 

They blinked, and listened intently to his explanation. 

Nico’s aversion to being touched was about surprises, and being so in his own mind that an unexpected arm around his shoulders or kiss on his cheek disrupted and invaded every comfort zone.

This was why Will could not reach out. And why would he? His most important responsibility as Nico’s boyfriend was to make him feel happy and safe and respected. 

“But what about your happiness?” asked Kayla. 

“And your comfort?” questioned Austin. 

Will held up his hand. “Won’t you let me finish?” 

They shut up, still eyeing him skeptically. 

Although Nico di Angelo did not like to _be_ touched, he did like _to_ touch. 

And Will Solace loved to be touched. 

Nico could reach down and lace their fingers together while they walked along the beach. He could pull Will close while they watched a movie in the dim light of the Hades cabin, tell him goodbye with a bone crushing hug before he left to run his father’s Underworldly errands, and show him gentle affection in private with an unconscious ease that so many of their peers seemed to do. 

Nico could, and often did, reach out and brush away the crumbs of a breakfast sandwich eaten hastily before work from Will’s cheek. He was enthusiastically encouraged to put a hand on the back of Will’s neck, pull him close until their lips met, and kiss him with abandon until it was time for them to part. 

Will relieved his siblings, and explained that his relationship with Nico was healthy and fulfilling, and physical affection was so sincerely given and received. 

“It is,” Will told them, his voice soft and gentle, entirely unguarded. 

They blinked, and listened intently to his explanation. 

Will's love of being touched was about surprises, and being so in his own mind that an unexpected arm around his waist or a kiss on his forehead could destroy and overshadow every insecurity creeping in.

That was why Nico reached out. And why wouldn’t he? His most important responsibility as Will's boyfriend was to make him feel happy and safe and supported. 

“I’m very happy,” Will told Kayla. 

“I am so, so comforted.” He said to Austin. 

His siblings held up their hands, laughing as they surrendered. “We’re convinced now, are you finished?” 

Will spoke up, eyeing them with admonishment. 

Communication, to Will and Nico, was the key to a healthy and fulfilling relationship. With or without physical affection. 

Will could tell Nico about the shadows of the people he couldn’t save, how they still haunted him from time to time. Will would tell him whenever he was jarred awake by nightmares, how they left him breathless and sweaty and dry-heaving over the edge of the bed until his throat was raw. He could tell Nico that sometimes, when he was overworked and exhausted and too wound up to fall asleep, he raided the infirmary’s medical cabinet for something that might send him to oblivion. Will could tell him how tired he was, how he sometimes wanted to leave Will Solace, Head Councilor of Cabin 7; accomplished combat medic and healer behind, how he wished he lived in a different world. 

Nico always understood.

“I love you.” He would whisper, gathering Will close. “It’s okay to be sad.” 

Nico could tell Will about the light of the present, how it had started chasing away the darkness of his past. Nico would tell him when he slept through the night and actually woke up well-rested, how it left him warm and safe and smiling until his cheeks were sore. He could tell Will that sometimes, when he was relaxed and comfortable and too lazy to get out of bed, he imagined different, horrifying scenarios that might send him into a panicked frenzy just to sabotage himself. Nico could tell Will how he felt so much energy now, that he loved being Nico di Angelo, son of Hades; year-rounder at Camp Half-Blood and beloved friend, how he wouldn’t trade it for the world. 

Will always understood. 

“I love you, too.” He would laugh, beaming at Nico proudly. “It’s okay to be happy.”


End file.
